Die Empirik des Blicks | The Empirical Gaze

The scientific research expeditions of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th century are inextricably linked with the history of maritime seafaring: It was the ship that enabled man to conquer the oceans. In this venture, the camera as a visual expression of western self-empowerment was his permanent companion. The conquest of the world through photography entailed the method of scientific measurement and as an interface, it brings together such different academic fields as geography, glaciology, oceanography, antiquity, Oriental studies, ethnology, anthropology, zoology, and colonial studies. Presenting nine case studies, this volume enquires into the photographic measurement of the world around 1900. In this context, the varied intermedial possibilities of relating and evaluating photographic pictures with which photographic protagonists authenticate and document their visual observations are at the centre of attention.